He has stood on the balcony of the royal palace many times before, as a little boy on Syttende mai, as a 28-year-old newlywed with his crown princess. Nevertheless, it was as if King Haakon VIII stepped into the unknown, shortly before 5pm on Wednesday 9 September 2026.
When the barriers around the procession were removed, the spectators rushed up the castle hill to the gathering place below the balcony. Perhaps the Norwegians thought the best way to honor King Harald V was to support his son.
But as a young visitor stated to me: It was hard to know whether to shout hurray. If one should be happy or sad.
In a monarchy, the main character can mourn a parent and take on a new demanding job at the same moment. Things get rough on a royal funeral day, when the flags are raised and the band changes the mournful music to a happy march.
Melancholy characterized Oslo for large parts of Wednesday. For many hours, the Norwegian capital was remarkably quiet, even though tens of thousands of people had made their way to the center to follow the old king's last journey.
Anne Marte Ellertsen told DN that she had traveled seven hours from Vestlandet with her husband and children to get a spectator seat at the procession from the castle. She wanted to honor Harald V, whom she described as a thoroughly fine man. Trans woman Siri Diana began the day quietly on a park bench on the castle hill. She was there to show her gratitude for King Harald defending LGBTQ people in a speech.
During the funeral service, speaker after speaker paid tribute to the warmth and humor of the late king. King Haakon VIII smiled quietly, and Queen Mette-Marit took out her handkerchief, when the Speaker of the Storting recalled King Harald's meeting with a homeless newsagent - he who promised a better life and did not want to lie to the king. Many had difficulty holding back tears when Queen Sonja honored her husband with a red rose. Crown Princess Victoria read a prayer.
After the service, the procession continued towards Akershus castle church. Then King Haakon walked side by side with his Nordic colleagues, Denmark's King Frederik and Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf.
Then came the meeting with the people.
King Haakon, Queen Mette-Marit, Queen Dowager Sonja, Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus waved and waved from the balcony. Right then, it was easy to forget how the royal couple's path to the throne has been marred by scandals and illness.
No one can doubt that Norway's new king and queen find comfort in the love of the people. But the legacy of King Harald V can be both a blessing and a curse.
It is not easy being the one to succeed a beloved regent. Norwegian kings have experienced this before.
King Haakon VII, Norway's first monarch of his own in modern times, almost received sainthood during his 52 years on the throne. He defended the Labor government and he stood up to Nazism. He laid the foundation for the strong position of the royal house. But for the son Olav, the legacy after the change of throne in 1957 became heavy to bear, as several royal experts have testified. Grandson Harald took over in 1991 and had 35 years to grow into the role of father of the country.
Now comes the next shift.
Had King Haakon wished for more time, more conversations, a better opportunity? Don't most of us do that when we lose our parents? Even when we avoid the burden of comparison?
On a child's drawing in the sea of ââflowers outside the castle, the signature sums up Oskar in scattered letters: "It was sad that you died".
